QuakeIndex

Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist

M 1.7md

Earthquake near Dalton, GA

USGS: 5 km SSW of Tunnel Hill, Georgia

35 km (22 mi) SSE of Chattanooga, TN

1:26 am EDT, Mar 21, 2017 · · 3.9 km deep · released about 9.3 lb of TNT

Every earthquake near Dalton Felt it? Tell USGS Check my area
10 km30 km60 km120 km N Whitfield County 8 kmCatoosa County 15 kmWalker County 23 kmMurray County 29 kmGordon County 35 kmDade County 42 kmHamilton County 44 kmChattooga County 44 kmBradley County 44 km
Distance rings around the epicentre, with the nearest towns at their true direction and later quakes as coloured dots. Not a shaking map — see the USGS ShakeMap for that.
When
1:26 am EDT on 21 March 2017 ()
Where
8 km (5 mi) WNW of Dalton, GA · earthquakes near Dalton
Magnitude
M 1.7 (md)
Depth
3.9 km below the surface
Felt
no reports yet
Nearest
Whitfield County, 8 km E
Status
Reviewed by a seismologist

USGS · last changed by USGS · we first saw it 3483 days ago

A magnitude 1.7 earthquake was recorded 8 km (5 mi) WNW of Dalton, GA, at 1:26 am EDT on 21 March 2017 (05:26 UTC). This was a minor earthquake. Quakes this small are rarely felt and do not cause damage.

Earthquakes near other towns within 30 km: Varnell, Ringgold, LaFayette, Chickamauga, East Brainerd, Fort Oglethorpe.

How big was it?

This earthquake released about 9.3 lb of TNT. Magnitude is logarithmic: each whole step up releases about 32 times more energy, so a magnitude 2.7 would have released about 32 times as much.

  1. Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 1,600,000× the energy of this one
  2. Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 1,100,000× the energy of this one
  3. Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 100× the energy of this one
  4. This earthquake M 1.7 about 9.3 lb of TNT

Energy from the Gutenberg–Richter relation (log10E = 1.5M + 4.8), rounded to two figures; bar length is magnitude, which is already a logarithm of energy. Magnitudes of past earthquakes from the USGS catalogue.

For this area

No earthquake of M4 or more has been recorded within 50 km since our catalogue begins in 2016.

Before 2016, the USGS record since 1900 lists no earthquake of M5 or more within 50 km.

Since 2016: the QuakeIndex catalogue (US, M1.5+), built from the USGS FDSN event service. Before 2016: USGS ComCat, M5+ from 1900. Distances are between epicentres. This is the record, not a forecast.

Where

Epicentre 34.7885, -85.0563. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.

Nearby places

PlaceDistanceDirection from the epicentre
Whitfield County, GA 8 km (5 mi) E earthquakes near Whitfield County
Catoosa County, GA 15 km (9 mi) NNW earthquakes near Catoosa County
Walker County, GA 23 km (15 mi) WSW earthquakes near Walker County
Murray County, GA 29 km (18 mi) E earthquakes near Murray County
Gordon County, GA 35 km (22 mi) SSE earthquakes near Gordon County
Dade County, GA 42 km (26 mi) W earthquakes near Dade County

Places and coordinates from the US Census Bureau Gazetteer (2024). Distances are from the epicentre.

Aftershocks so far

52 earthquakes have been recorded within 50 km since this one.

  1. 2.1 10 km ENE of Mentone, Alabama
  2. 2.5 5 km NNE of East Brainerd, Tennessee
  3. 2.1 4 km S of Tunnel Hill, Georgia
  4. 2.4 9 km SW of Tunnel Hill, Georgia
  5. 2.3 4 km N of Ooltewah, Tennessee
  6. 2.0 5 km S of Tunnel Hill, Georgia
  7. 2.1 11 km SSW of Benton, Tennessee
  8. 2.2 11 km SSW of Benton, Tennessee
  9. 2.5 9 km SW of Wildwood Lake, TN
  10. 1.5 8.3 km NE of Wildwood Lake, TN
  11. 2.2 5 km WSW of Chickamauga, Georgia
  12. 2.3 2 km WSW of Indian Springs, Georgia
  13. 2.5 5 km S of Tunnel Hill, Georgia
  14. 2.7 6 km WSW of Chickamauga, Georgia
  15. 2.1 6 km E of Trion, Georgia

Counted from the QuakeIndex database, which ingests the USGS feed every 30 seconds · as of . QuakeIndex does not forecast aftershocks. When USGS issues an operational aftershock forecast it appears on the USGS event page.

On USGS

QuakeIndex does not issue warnings. For earthquake early warning see ShakeAlert.